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Thursday, November 25, 2010

1/2 Marathon Finish Line

So how did it all end...

It was a beautiful day for a run. The day started off foggy and cool at 59' but the temperature was upper 60's by the end of the race.

I woke up dark and early at 5:30 and got to Turner Field at about 6:15AM plenty of parking , got a great space right near the exit. I met up with my running buddy Tashawn and we jogged around dropping stuff at each others cars before the race. Then about 10 minutes before race time we decided we might need to make a porta stop b4 the run. Porta spot 1, no entry these are for kids only, porta stop 2 OMG why is the line soooo long. National Anthem starts, 7 minutes til start time. Porta stop 3, okay this looks promising, 5 minutes later we obviously picked the WRONG line. I finally get in and here the announcer say...1 minute to start time, I dash out just as she is making the 30 second countdown!

Ready - Set - and we are off!

Mile 1 - okay my pace is a little to fast, our goal is 10 min miles so we can finish at 2hrs and 10mins. If we start to fast we'll burn out. Feeling good tho, the crowd is thick but the first mile is pretty much downhill.

Mile 6 - We've just hit piedmont park! Okay i've completed a 10k, still ahead of pace, I am feeling it tho a bit in my calves. We just finished a hill and flattened out, i feel like I am getting a second wind. I think a pebble got in my shoe?

Mile 8 - Somewhere between mile 8 and 9. Me and my run buddy part ways. Now the pace is evening out about 10 minute miles. There is definitely a pebble in my shoe.

Mile 9 - another incline, must keep going, i can see that it keeps going uphill just looking at the crowd ahead of me.

Mile 10 - Phew okay , Oakland cemetery, another incline, i love you calves, please make it, just 3 more miles

Mile 11 - Okay coming into the home stretch, and another hill.

Mile 12 - And another incline, everyone is looking for the mile 12 marker, whoohoo there it is. Just one more sharp incline, oooh man, hello quads. At this rate I will probably finish right at the 2:10 mark.

Mile 13 - Finally, I am almost there. 0.1 mile to go... i didn't know .1 mile could feel so long. Up the hill to the olympic rings and it's all downhill from here. I try to sprint but I barely have anything left in the reserve. But, then I see the actual finish sign so i open up my stride and finish as strong as I can.

Unofficial Finish time:2:09:46 about 10 minute miles

kcal:1769

HRR:Avg 181 BPM, Max HR 191 BPM

I was actually faster last year. I feel like this course was a lot more challenging than last year. But so far I am really sore but I do not think it is a stress fracture this time...I guess we'll know for sure in about a week. And yes it is confirmed some how a piece of gravel got in my shoe? but no blister - I saw a guy with a heinous blister on his foot at the end of the race owwwww.